Study: USB 3.0 will see broad adoption by 2012

According to a study released by In-Stat, SuperSpeed USB (3.0) will see widespread adoption in PCs and peripherals over the next few years. The firm says that around 70% of external hard drives will use the spec by 2012, with similar assimilation rates in notebooks and desktop computers.

It estimates that by 2013, global shipments of USB 3.0 flash drives will near 200 million units, and eventually mobile phones will be the highest volume segment. In-Stat projects the upcoming interface to account for over 25% of the USB market by 2013.

The outfit has called USB the most successful interface ever, with over three billion devices shipped in 2008 alone. It speculates that Digital TVs with USB will grow to 140 million units shipped in 2013. During that time, USB-enabled gadgets are forecasted rise at a 6.6% compound annual growth rate.